Tool for opening containers having removable plug-type closures



Dec. 13, 1966 G STARK K. TOOL FOR OPENING CONTAINERS HAVING REMOVABLEPLUG-TYPE GLOSURES Filed Oct. 30, 1964 INVENTOR KARL GUNHQR sTnRKATTORNEYS United States Patent Ofiice await? Patented Dec. 13, 19663,290,967 TOOL FOR OPENING CONTAINERS HAVING REMOVABLE PLUG-TYPECLOSURES Karl Gunnar Stark, Malmo, Sweden, assignor to ABPlatmanufaktur, Malmo, Sweden Filed Oct. 30, 1964, Ser. No. 407,835 6Claims. (Cl. 81-3.4-6)

The present invention relates to a tool for opening cans of the plugclosure or paint can type wherein the edge of the opening of the canbody is turned over so as to present a peripheral part directedoutwardly with relation to said body opening, and in which the cover ofthe can consists of a tubular part which is closed at one end to providea closure plug inserted in the can, and which has its upper edge turnedover to provide a part which is directed outwardly to overlie theoutwardly directed body part defining the can body opening. When thecover is applied on the can, it is held in place by the friction betweenthe outer body surface of the tubular part thereof and the inner bodysurface of the can body, the two parts of the cover and body which aredirected outwardly then being in contact with each other. In the use ofcans of this kind, it is desirable that the cover may be removed andreplaced a number of times without being damaged, the can then beingsatisfactorily sealed after each cover removal and replacement,particularly since cans of this kind are widely used as containers forpaint.

It has been found difficult to fulfill the above-mentioned desire forsatisfactorily sealing cans of the kind referred to after replacement ofthe cover, as a consumer of the contents of the can is usually verycareless when opening the can. To open such cans, a screw driver or thelike is most often used, the same being forced in between the opposedoutwardly directed parts of the can body and the cover. The cover isthereafter pried off, and both the outwardly directed part of the coverand the like part of the can body are then damaged by this pryingpractice. In order to open the can, it is necessary that the screwdriver be reinserted at a number of places between the two closelyopposed outwardly directed body and cover parts about the periphery ofthe can. These parts will thus be damaged at several places about theperiphery.

The purpose of thepresent invention is to provide a novel tool by use ofwhich cans of the type referred to can be opened with a minimum ofdamage to the outwardly directed parts of the can body and the cover, sothat the cover can be removed and replaced a number of times and stillfulfill the desire for satisfactory sealing of the closed can.

The tool of the present invention and which provides for the desiredgentle opening of cans of the character stated is characterized by arather long part, intended to be in contact with the inner body surfaceof the plug wall of the cover, preferably along a line in an axial planethrough the can and the cover, by a second part opposite said part,located outside said can at said contact surface, and joined to thefirst-mentioned part by means of a yoke or connecting portion, and by apointed part in the nature of a wedge and which emanates from saidsecond part, which pointed part has its point directed mainly towardsthe first-mentioned part, so that at said contact and at a turning ofthe tool along said line in a fulcruming action, said pointed partpenetrates with a wedge effect between the closely opposed outwardlydirected parts of the cover and the can and pries them apart so that thecover is raised.

According to a further feature of the invention, the

tool is provided with a part formed to be engageable between opposedoutwardly directed cover and can body parts and manipulated to forcesaid parts away from each other so that with this aid a partly openedcover can be further opened.

According to still another feature of the invention, the tool hasanother portion thereof formed into a screw driver, so that when thetool is usedfby a painter, for instance, he has a combination tool withwhich he can both open or start and then complete the opening of thecan, as aforesaid, or perform other functions such as screwing offhardware on doors.

With the above and other objects in view that will hereinafter appear,the nature of the invention will be more clearly understood by referenceto the following detailed description, the appended claims and theseveral views illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view illustrating a preferred form of theinvention.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view illustrating an alternative or modifiedform of the tool.

FIGURE 3 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 with the tool shown in itsinitial position of application on a can to be opened thereby, theopening cycle being about to commence.

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 with the tool swung to the sideand completing the initial or partial lifting or opening of the cancover.

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view showing the tool of FIGURE 1 with its canopening or cover lift completing portion inserted in the space betweencover and can body provided by the partial opening illustrated in FIGURE4.

FIGURE 6 is a view similar to FIGURE 5 but showing the tool turned tocomplete the opening or uplifting of the cover or closure plug.

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary radial sectional view illustrating initialapplication of the tool to a covered container wherein the opposedperipheral parts of the cover and container are reinforced by a fiatfold.

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the opposed peripheralparts of a container reinforced by a more nearly curled edgereinforcement.

The tool structure shown in FIGURES 1 and 3 through 6 may be stampedfrom a plate and shaped to include a contact or fulcrum part I, awedge-formed penetration part 2, which is bent in angular relation tothe main body or shaft part or downward, as viewed in FIGURE 1, and ayoke or connecting part 3. Furthermore, the main body or shaft part 4has an end portion 5 which is formed into a screw driver. Along one sideof the shaft part, there is provided a rather long projection part 6,the ends 7 and 8 of which have a trough-shaped character. One of thesides of the part 6 is joined to the shaft 4-. In the left-hand end, asviewed in FIGURE 1, the tool also has a hole 9, so that it can be put ona key r1ng.

In the modified design of the tool shown in FIGURE 2, there are includedthe contact part 1, the wedgeformed penetration part 2', which is bentdownward as viewed in FIGURE 2, or to one side of the plane of the mainbody, and the yoke or connecting part 3'. A part 4' extends in onedirection from said three parts, one end 5 of which is formed into ascrew driver, and in the other direction, at right angles to the part4', a part 10 extends, the end of which is provided with the part 6, theends 7 and 8' of which have the beforementioned trough-shaped characteras clearly shown in FIGURE 2. Also, this tool may be stamped from aplate.

In both said tools, the contact part 1 or 1', the wedgeformedpenetration part 2 or 2' and the yoke part 3 or 3', as well as the part6 or 6' serve the same purpose and are operable in generally the samemanner. Therefore, in the following description, only the functioning ofthe tool according to FIGURE 1 will be described.

If then FIGURE 3 is studied, it will be noted that the contact part 1 orfulcrum is brought to bear vertically against the inner or tubular bodysurface 11 of a cover 12 which has been applied to seal a can 13. SeeFIGURE 7. The cover has a part 14 which is turned outward, and the canhas a similar part 15. Said turned-out parts are in close contact witheach other, so that there is only a narrow space 16 between them. Thepenetration or wedge part 2 is brought to bear against said narrow space16. If now the tool is turned counter-clockwise, as indicated by thearrow A, while the contact or fulcrum part 1 continues to bear againstthe inner body surface of the cover, the wedge-formed part 2 willpenetrate between the two turned-out parts 14 and 15, so that the coverwill be raised in the manner illustrated in FIGURE 4. This cover liftingprocedure can be repeated at further points about the periphery of thecan, if desired.

The raising of the cover, which has been achieved with the aid of theparts 1-2, can be augmented with the aid of the part 6, which is theninserted in the space formed between the parts 14 and 15, as clearlyshown in FIG- URE 5. When thus inserted, the trough-shaped end 7 of thepart or projection 6 is brought to bear against the turned-out part ofthe can, and the trough-shaped part 8 against the turned-out part 14 ofthe cover. Following this insertion of the part 6 and said contact ofthe ends 7 and 8, the tool is turned 90 clockwise around an axis atright angles to the body surface of the can, as indicated by the arrowB, and the cover 12 is thus raised to a height corresponding to thelength of the part 6 as shown in FIGURE 6.

From the foregoing, it is evident that, according to the presentinvention, an extremely simple tool is provided with which to open cansof the abovementioned kind without causing any major damage to the partsof the can which are to be separated from each other.

It should be obvious that the can itself, instead of having a turned-outpart, can have a body of a thickness which corresponds to the turned-outpart.

The particular form which the tool can be given can be varied on thecondition that it has the parts 1-3 and 6, located in such a way thatthe tool can fulfill the functions described herein. For example, in theoptional development shown in FIGURE 2 the desired functional identityof the initial prying or wedging parts and the follow up lift enlargingparts is retained and yet their relative positioning on the main body orshaft is ma terially altered, said body or shaft itself being changedfrom straight line to a generally right angular shaping.

It is to be understood also that the tool is adaptable for openingcontainers or the like of various forms wherein the opposing peripheralcover and container parts are outwardly directed. These parts,preferably, are reinforced, and either a flat fold reinforcement, asshown in FIG- URE 7 or a more nearly curled edge reinforcement, at 14,15', as shown in FIGURE 8 will serve not only to provide the desiredstrengthening against deformation, but also will facilitate entrance ofthe wedge-like lifting part 2.

I claim:

1. A tool for opening a container, said container provided with a bodyhaving an opening and a removable plug type cover including a generallycylindrical inwardly facing friction wall engageable in the containeropening, the container body and the cover each having an outwardlydirected peripheral part which parts are disposed to closely oppose eachother wvhen the container is closed by the cover, said tool comprising agenerally planar body having fulcrum means at one end and a handleportion at the other end, said fulcrum means providing fulcruming linecontact with the inwardly facing friction wall of the cover with saidplanar body placed generally along a line in an axial plane through thecover and the container, and wedge means on said planar body locatedopposite said fulcrum means and between said fulcrum means and saidhandle portion, said wedge means being placed for disposition outwardlyof the container opposite said fulcruming contact and including awedge-like point directed towards said fulcrum means, whereby uponfulcruming of the tool body generally about said fulcruming line, saidpoint will penetrate with a wedging action between the closely opposedperipheral parts of the cover and the container and lift the cover.

2. A tool according to claim 1 and also including an elongatedprojection on said tool body, said elongated projection being insertablein the space which is formed between the opposed peripheral cover andcontainer body parts when the cover has been partially raised, the endsof said elongated projection being spaced so that when the tool isturned around an axis at right angles to the body of the container withcontinued contact against said opposed peripheral parts, the spacingbetween said peripheral parts will be increased to the length of saidelongated projection.

3. A tool according to claim 1 and also including an elongatedprojection on said tool body, said elongated projection being insertablein the space which is formed between the opposed peripheral cover andcontainer body parts when the cover has been partially raised, the endsof said elongated projection being spaced so that when the tool isturned around an axis at right angles to the body of the container withcontinued contact against said opposed peripheral parts, the spacingbetween said peripheral parts will be increased to the length of saidelongated projection, the effective end extremities defining the lengthof said elongated projection being trough-like in character.

4. A tool according to claim 1, wherein said planar body includes twoend portions joined in generally right angular relation, and wherein theopposing fulcrum means and the wedge-like point are disposed at thejuncture of said angularly related end portions.

5. A tool according to claim 1, wherein said generally planar bodyincludes two end portions joined in generally right angular relation,the opposing fulcrum means and the wedge-like point being disposed atthe juncture of said angularly related end portions, and also includingon one of said angularly related end portions an elongated projectioninsertable in the space which is formed between the opposed peripheralcover and container body parts when the cover has been partially raised,the end portions of said elongated projection being spaced so that whenthe projection is turned about its center the spacing of said peripheralparts and the degree of opening of the cover will be increased to thelength of said elongated projection.

6. A tool for opening a container, said container provided with a bodyhaving an opening and a removable plug type cover including a generallycylindrical inwardly facing friction wall engageable in the containeropening, the container body and the cover each having an outwardlydirected peripheral part which parts are disposed to closely oppose eachother when the container is closed by the cover, said tool comprising agenerally flat planar body having fulcrum means thereon for fulcrumingline contact with the inwardly facing friction wall of the cover withsaid body placed generally along a line in an axial plane through thecover and the container, and wedge means on said body opposite saidfulcrum means, said wedge means being placed for disposition outwardlyof the container opposite said fulcruming contact and including awedge-like point directed towards said fulcrum means, said wedge-likepoint being turned angularly to one side of said plate, whereby uponfulcruming of the tool body generally about said fulcruming line, saidpoint will 5 penetrate with a wedging action between the closely op-1,568,312 posed peripheral parts of the cover and the container and1,676,649 lift the cover. 2,501,205 2,675,721 References Cited by theExaminer 5 3,172,317

UNITED STATES PATENTS D. 46,983 2/1915 Holden. D. 169,490 5/1953 Hug81-3.46

6 Becker.

Podel 81-3.46 Boucher 81-346 Kramer et a1 81--3.46 Blakeslee et a181--3.46

WILLIAM FELDMAN, Primary Examiner. G. WEIDENFELD, Assistant Examiner.

1. A TOOL FOR OPENING A CONTAINER, SAID CONTAINER PROVIDED WITH A BODYHAVING AN OPENING AND A REMOVABLE PLUG TYPE COVER INCLUDING A GENERALLYCYLINDRICAL INWARDLY FACING FRICTION WALL ENGAGEABLE IN THE CONTAINEROPENING, THE CONTAINER BODY AND THE COVER EACH HAVING AN OUTWARDLYDIRECTED PERIPHERAL PART WHICH PARTS ARE DISPOSED TO CLOSELY OPPOSE EACHOTHER WHEN THE CONTAINER IS CLOSED BY THE COVER, SAID TOOL COMPRISING AGENERALLY PLANAR BODY HAVING FULCRUM MEANS AT ONE END AND A HANDLEPORTION AT THE OTHER END, SAID FULCRUM MEANS PORVIDING FULCRUMING LINECONTACT WITH THE INWARDLY FACING FRICTION WALL OF THE COVER WITH SAIDPLANAR BODY PLACED GENERALLY ALONG A LINE IN AN AXIAL PLANE THROUGH THECOVER AND THE CONTAINER, AND WEDGE MEANS ON SAID PLANAR BODY LOCATEDOPPOSITE SAID FULCRUM MEANS AND BETWEEN SAID FULCRUM MEANS AND SAIDHANDLE PORTION, SAID WEDGE MEANS BEING PLACED FOR DISPOSITION OUTWARDLYOF THE CONTAINER OPPOSITE SAID FULCRUMING CONTACT AND INCLUDING AWEDGE-LIKE POINT DIRECTED TOWARDS SAID FULCRUM MEANS, WHEREBY UPONFULCRUMING OF THE TOOL BODY GENERALLY ABOUT SAID FULCRUMING LINE, SAIDPOINT WILL PENETRATE WITH A WEDGING ACTION BETWEEN THE CLOSELY OPPOSEDPERIPHERAL PARTS OF THE COVER AND THE CONTAINER AND LIFT THE COVER.